


glorious

by PEGCHANGMIN



Category: SF9 (Band)
Genre: (inspired by the 9loryUS teasers), Alternate Universe - Gang World, Fluff, M/M, Minor Violence, Opposites Attract
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-25
Updated: 2020-06-25
Packaged: 2021-03-04 01:47:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,164
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24905572
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PEGCHANGMIN/pseuds/PEGCHANGMIN
Summary: Sanghyuk, who's shy and comes from an incredibly rich and well distinguished family, crosses paths with Taeyang, a mysterious and reserved gang member.The two couldn't be any more different.
Relationships: Lee Sanghyuk | Dawon/Yoo Taeyang
Comments: 7
Kudos: 24





	glorious

**Author's Note:**

> me??? writing soft taewon that's not porn??? wow the character development here
> 
> so the backstory behind this is that i saw the first teasers for 9loryUS (they looked stunning btw) and immediately tweeted [this ](https://twitter.com/PEGCHANGMIN/status/1275651357190557698?s=20) . i couldn't stop thinking about it so i wrote this entire fic in a day whew!! this is just one big brain dump lol. 
> 
> 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴: as the tag suggests, there is mild violence involved. it's not incredibly graphic, but there is one fight scene, and taeyang does stab someone (not sanghyuk though). with that in mind, please proceed with caution if that stuff makes you uncomfortable!! also gotta emphasize that in no way am i trying to glorify gangs, this is a work of fiction and should be treated as such. this kinda makes the fic sound scary but it's very soft!! i hope u all enjoy ♡

Outside, the sky is a brilliant shade of blue.

Sanghyuk's always found a strange source of comfort in the great outdoors. He grew up without much say in what he could and couldn't do, his entire life meticulously planned by his parents with a single goal in mind: eventually taking over the company. There’s something incredibly comforting and liberating about nature, he thinks to himself, as his eyes are transfixed to the soft looking clouds from beyond the glass windows of the corporate skyrise. 

"Son, are you even listening to me right now?"

Sanghyuk snaps out of his daydream, picturesque images of sprawling fields and clear blue skies replaced by the visual of his father's cold stare.

“Huh?”

Unsurprisingly, his father sighs, frowning in disappointment. “Sanghyuk, this is unacceptable. How are you going to manage an entire company if you can’t even focus on what your father is saying?” Sanghyuk lowers his head sheepishly, unable to meet his father’s frigid stare. “We might as well adjourn the meeting for now, as you clearly don’t seem to care about anything.” He says in a clipped tone. “We’ll resume tomorrow. Let’s hope you seem to care more about the ten billion dollars on the line at a later date.” 

Sanghyuk doesn’t lift his head back up until his father stands up and exits the room. 

☼ ☼ ☼

Sanghyuk has always yearned for a sense of freedom. 

When he returns to his family’s estate after the disastrous meeting, he’s filled with the foreign feeling of rebellion. As overbearing as his parents are, they are equally neglectful, oftentimes leaving Sanghyuk at random intervals to go take care of “important business matters”. Sanghyuk’s fed up with this, having to constantly listen to his parents even though he’s a grown adult, and sick of staying at home whenever his parents go out without him. 

So he chooses the most rational route. 

He takes an Uber into the heart of the city. 

As the car speeds past a suburban neighbourhood and the conventional duplicated white picket fences with glistening green lawns transition to the concrete jungle of the city, Sanghyuk watches out the window with a newfound sense of delight and glee. There are so many cool sights! Sanghyuk is wide eyed at nearly everything, from the mundane hot dog stand at the corner of an intersection to a small band busking for tips. It’s quite ironic that he’s so fascinated by the exact same route he takes to work every single day, but this is different: everything is recontextualized by his newfound freedom. 

He thanks the driver when the car screeches to a halt, in a part of the city that he isn’t as familiar with. Sanghyuk tips the driver generously with the Uber app before stepping out, beaming at the city that greets him. 

Sanghyuk is filled with so much excitement and wonder that he doesn’t even know where to begin. There are so many interesting things in the city that he’s always wanted to check out, his list is so long that he has absolutely no clue where to start. Might as well just start with the basics: walking down the street and seeing where things lead him. Pleased by his idea, Sanghyuk begins his trek, oohing and ahhing at the sights but what catches his attention the most is when he stops in front of an alleyway and hears a shout followed by a scream. 

Realistically, any rational thinking individual would most likely walk away, but the only thing that registers in Sanghyuk’s mind is that there could be someone hurt, or worse, in danger. His curiosity gets the best of him and he walks into the alleyway without second thought.

“Hello? Anyone there? Are you okay? I can call for an ambulance!” 

He hears the sound of someone being punched, followed by another groan. Sanghyuk is horrified, running further down the alleyway, determined to help whoever could be hurt. He hears the scuffle of rubber against pavement, more muffled sounds that he can’t quite decipher. Finally, a shadow emerges from the other side of the alleyway,  _ running straight towards Sanghyuk.  _

“Hey! Are you okay?” Sanghyuk shouts out. The sound of footsteps increases in volume, and soon the figure emerges from the shadows, looking clearly beaten up and bruised. “Are you alright?” Sanghyuk tries, calling out again since it didn’t seem as if the stranger heard him the first few times. 

The stranger immediately turns his head towards Sanghyuk, and if he didn’t look furious enough, his face twists into pure  _ rage _ . He swings his fist forwards, socking Sanghyuk in the stomach, the impact enough to send Sanghyuk crashing against the pavement. Sanghyuk’s phone slides out of his jacket and the stranger drives his foot to the ground, cracking the phone. Sanghyuk shouts in pain, kicking upwards to try to get rid of the stranger which only leaves him more exposed as the stranger grabs onto his right arm, and  _ twists.  _

Sanghyuk screams in pain, hearing something pop that really shouldn’t, though before the stranger can move onto his other arm, another figure emerges from the shadows. The stranger is tackled to the ground, away from Sanghyuk. The last thing Sanghyuk sees before his world dissipates to black is the figure pulling out something that looks like a knife, plunging it into the body of the stranger. 

☼ ☼ ☼ 

Sanghyuk awakens to a room he’s unfamiliar with, and notices there’s another person beside him. He shifts a little on the stiff bed he’s on, propping himself up on his elbows to get a better look at the person. The first thought he has is  _ wow, he’s really pretty,  _ but the second one is  _ oh shit, that’s the guy that stabbed a person in front of me,  _ and immediately recoils. 

“Hey, you’re awake.” He says, nonchalantly. “You were out for awhile. We were worried that your arm may have been dislocated, but thankfully it doesn’t seem to be the case. How are you feeling?” 

_ Oh yeah, I got beat up. That happened.  _

Sanghyuk registers the soreness of his stomach and right arm, but surprisingly there’s no real pain. “I feel fine, uh, I just have no idea what happened. Are you a criminal?” That elicits a snort from the stranger. 

“Not really.”

“You … you stabbed a person. I’m pretty sure that counts as criminal activity.” 

The stranger fixes him with an indecipherable look. “Do you really want to know?” Sanghyuk instinctively nods, and the stranger sighs. “I’m a part of a gang. Stuff like this just happens sometimes. That guy wasn’t exactly a good person either, I had to do what I had to do.” 

“Huh?!” Sanghyuk scrambles to get into a seated position, looking around the room with much more fear. He’s simultaneously filled with wonder and shock, staring at the pretty stranger in front of him. Never in his entire life did he ever expect to get involved with a  _ gang member.  _ “Where am I now? Are you going to hurt me?” 

The stranger now laughs, albeit dryly. “No, if we were going to hurt you we would’ve done so earlier.” 

Sanghyuk frowns, pouting. “What kind of answer is that? It’s not comforting at all!” 

The stranger suddenly looks a little more shy, and Sanghyuk’s brain instantly reacts with  _ wow, cute cute cute,  _ but shoves that thought away. “I’m not really good at this kinda stuff.” He admits, lowering his gaze to the floor. “Conversing, comforting, that kinda stuff. Wish I was better though.” A moment of silence. “Listen, the fact of the matter is, we still have morals. You got involuntarily caught in the middle of the fight, and we weren’t going to leave you unconscious on the streets.” 

“Oh, huh.” 

“Yeah.” 

More silence.

“What’s your name?” Sanghyuk tries. 

"Taeyang. What's  _ your _ name?" Taeyang asks.

"Dawon." 

Taeyang raises an eyebrow. "Your real name."

Shit, was Sanghyuk that easy to read? He flounders, flushing a little bit.

"Sanghyuk." He admits. An uncomfortable silence. "How old are you?"

Taeyang snorts. "You think I'm just going to give my age to you?"

"I'm twenty-four." Sanghyuk responds. 

Taeyang lets out a dry laugh. "You gave me a fake name the first time around but now you're telling me how old you are?" 

Sanghyuk flushes. "It was a gut reaction. My parents told me to use that name whenever I met a stranger."

"Twenty-two."

"Huh?"

Taeyang scowls. "You want me to spell it out for you? My age. Twenty-two."

Sanghyuk visibly brightens at that. "I can't believe I'm older than you!” 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” 

“You just look all,” Sanghyuk gestures to him, finally taking a good look at Taeyang, “tough and rough and all.” Taeyang’s dressed head to toe in black combat gear, boots with thick rubber soles, fingerless gloves, and Sanghyuk’s  _ pretty  _ sure that that’s a gun tucked into the side of his belt’s holster. “Mature. I have no idea where I was going with this.” 

Taeyang slowly nods, though his expression has softened. 

“Wait, so what kind of stuff do you guys do?” 

Taeyang’s gaze stiffens again. “I don’t think you want to know.” 

Sanghyuk’s about to open to his mouth to press further, when the door to the room suddenly opens and a  _ really tall dude  _ sticks his head in. “Hey, is he doing okay?” He says, nodding towards Sanghyuk. “If he’s healed, the boss wants him out.” 

“He’s fine. I’ll escort him out.” 

The tall dude nods and disappears as quickly as he appeared. Taeyang turns towards Sanghyuk. “Oh, I almost forgot,” he says, procuring Sanghyuk’s damaged phone from his pocket, “this got a bit damaged. You might have to replace it.” 

Sanghyuk takes the phone, focusing a little too much on how their hands brush against one another. “Thanks, I can buy another one.” He responds, forgetting to leave out the part about how his father has enough money to buy an entire phone company, but just smiles at Taeyang.

Before he's let out, Taeyang fixes him with a stare. "Forget any of this ever happened. Go back to your normal life, don't think of this moment ever again." He orders, before quietly leading him out of the building.

☼ ☼ ☼

Sanghyuk calls an Uber and returns to his family's estate. He’s a little surprised that he’s not as frightened by the entire situation as he rationally should be, but rather filled with more questions than he had to begin with. Taeyang’s words loop through his mind throughout the entire duration of the car ride. Once he returns back home he immediately hops into the shower, rinsing off the grime and sweat, careful when washing his stomach and right arm. He expects things to go back to normal, for him to return to his life as if nothing happened, but there's now something new looming over his head. 

He can't stop thinking about Taeyang.

But could anyone realistically blame him?

Taeyang is strangely fascinating, Sanghyuk can’t describe how he feels at all, but he feels so magnetically drawn to Taeyang. They’re so different, and maybe Sanghyuk is chasing for a taste of something that’s not his daily structured corporate lifestyle. 

Not to mention that Taeyang’s possibly the most attractive person he’s ever met. 

What crushes him the most is that he’ll never meet Taeyang again. They realistically have no means to communicate with one another, even forgetting the fact that they’ve only met once, Taeyang is in a  _ gang  _ for crying out loud. Sanghyuk supposes he might not be too interested in living the same sort of outwardly public lifestyle that Sanghyuk’s lived his entire life. 

But still, the feeling of freedom is addictive. Sanghyuk wants  _ more,  _ so the next time his parents go out to do god knows what, he takes another Uber into the city. This time he ironically gets off at the street his father’s building is on, almost giddy when he stands on the sidewalk by his own volition. Not quite sure what to do (but  _ definitely  _ avoiding alleyways this time), Sanghyuk just decides to go to the coffee shop across the street. 

He orders his usual iced americano, thanking the cashier endlessly and leaving a twenty dollar tip. As Sanghyuk walks over to the pick-up area, something catches his eye. To any regular individual, the person standing about a few meters away from Sanghyuk, dressed head to toe in an all black two-piece hoodie and sweatpants combo with a beanie pulled over his head, wouldn’t exactly stand out. 

Yet that  _ face.  _ Sanghyuk could never forget his face. He’s shocked that he even got to see  _ him _ again. 

“Taeyang!” He calls out, and Taeyang immediately stiffens in his spot, slowly turning his head towards the sound of his name. His shoulders sag slightly when he realizes it’s just Sanghyuk, but his facial expression still looks incredibly apprehensive. 

“Sanghyuk?” Taeyang says in disbelief. He glances around the coffee shop cautiously, thankfully there isn’t anyone standing too close to the two of them. Taeyang lowers his voice to a whisper. “Have you been stalking me? Because if so,  _ you need to get out of here. _ ” 

Sanghyuk’s eyebrows lift up. “No! No, not at all, I promise! I had no idea you were going to be here.” Thankfully Taeyang seems to believe him.

“Why are you even talking to me though? I thought I told you to forget about everything that had happened.” He doesn’t sound accusatory, but says his words with a firm tone. 

"I missed you." Sanghyuk blurts out. Taeyang's face quickly morphs into a surprised expression, before almost immediately returning to his default reserved expression. It happens in nearly the blink of an eye.

"I've ... I've never gotten that before." 

"Really?" Sanghyuk cocks his head to the side. “Not at all?” 

Taeyang frowns. “No? Especially not in my line of business.” 

“I just want to get to know you better.” Sanghyuk says earnestly. “I dunno. I can leave if you want.” He looks away, a little sheepish. 

“Hello? Coffee for Rowoon and Sanghyuk? Your orders are ready!” A barista calls out, effectively halting their conversation. Sanghyuk looks over at Taeyang, holding back laughter. 

“ _ Rowoon? _ ” 

Taeyang puffs out his cheeks. “Look, even  _ you  _ gave me a nickname the first time we met. I can’t exactly go around giving my real name.” He mutters as they both collect their orders. 

“But Rowoon? How’d you come up with that name?” 

Like everything about Taeyang, he just replies with: “It’s a complicated story.” 

“Hey, you wanna stay for a bit? We could chat for a bit.” Sanghyuk eagerly suggests when Taeyang looks like he’s about to exit the coffee shop. 

“You wanna  _ chat with me? _ ” 

“Yeah?” Sanghyuk looks worried, wondering if he’s done something wrong. Isn’t that what acquaintances do from time to time?

“I guess I could spare a few minutes.” Taeyang finally replies, and Sanghyuk’s face brightens as if he’s in the presence of the sun itself. 

☼ ☼ ☼

A few minutes drag on to more than half an hour, and Sanghyuk is a little surprised by how easily conversation comes for the two of them. He holds onto Taeyang’s every sentence, spurring him on with more questions about his mysterious lifestyle, swapping him for tales of his boring mundane corporate lifestyle. 

“I still can’t believe you want to talk to me. You’re going to get me into so much trouble.” Taeyang sighs, but doesn’t look like he has any intentions of leaving. “I don’t think I’m that interesting to talk to.” 

“Are you kidding? You’re super interesting, I think you’re so cool!”

“Sanghyuk, I regularly kill people.” Taeyang says deadpan.

“It’s not like you enjoy doing it though. It’s just a part of your job, right?” Taeyang’s shared a little more about his life: how he graduated high school and halfway through university got involved with the wrong people. Eventually he ended up where he is now, but doesn’t seem to take pride in his work. Taeyang still stresses how hard it is to get out of his situation, how lonely he feels sometimes. 

“Yeah, I guess.” Taeyang shrugs. “This just feels really different,” he admits, “I don’t ever share that much about my life with anyone. I still can’t believe this is the second time we’ve met.” He gives a rare smile, and Sanghyuk’s heart stutters. Taeyang undeniably looks adorable dressed in an oversized sweatshirt, the bit of hair peeking from underneath his beanie looks so soft and Sanghyuk just wants to brush it away from his eyes. “You treat me differently from everyone else.” 

“You too.” Sanghyuk happily says, propping his chin up with his hands. “I grew up so sheltered, I didn’t really have that many friends, except for when I went to university. You’re also super cute.” 

Taeyang flushes, and Sanghyuk thinks to himself that pink is such a pretty colour on him. “How can you say that with absolutely no embarrassment?” Taeyang says, shocked. “I’ve never met someone as forward as you are.” 

“It’s the truth, right? I might as well say it.” 

“Sanghyuk, I am  _ astonished _ .” 

An idea suddenly pops into his head. 

“You free sometime next week?”

“What?” 

“You super busy?” 

Taeyang looks like he’s running through a mental calendar. “I’m usually busy throughout the week, weekends should be fine though. But seriously, why?” 

Sanghyuk looks giddy. This may possibly be one of the best ideas he’s ever had. “Come over to my house! It’ll be a lot of fun.” 

A beat of silence. 

"You want to invite  _ me _ over to  _ your house _ ? Sanghyuk, we barely know each other. I'm in a gang, for crying out loud. Why do you trust me so much?"

Sanghyuk shrugs, mulling over Taeyang's words and realizing that the thought of Taeyang possibly hurting him never crossed his mind. "I trust you."

Taeyang looks astonished. "How can you be so naive? What if bad people take advantage of you?" He demands, almost frustrated. "What if you get hurt?

"You're not going to hurt me though." Sanghyuk states simply, and for the first time, Taeyang looks off kilter, almost at a complete loss for words. 

"You're an enigma, Lee Sanghyuk."

Sanghyuk smiles happily. "I could say the same about you."

☼ ☼ ☼

They exchange numbers, though Taeyang informs him that he’s using a burner phone so his number will change after a week. Sanghyuk’s just happy he even got Taeyang’s number. 

Sanghyuk chooses a day when his parents are out on an “important business trip”, leaving most of the company affairs to their son to run, albeit with another higher-up executive to oversee him. He texts Taeyang his address, who nearly reels when he realizes who exactly Sanghyuk is. 

To his absolute surprise, Taeyang actually shows up. One of his parents' many maids calls for him, and tells Sanghyuk that there's someone at the door waiting for him. She looks incredibly wary, advising him not to talk to the stranger dressed in black, telling him that she thinks it all sounds too dangerous. Sanghyuk just smiles and tells her that he's just a friend, and she simply nods, albeit with much hesitance. 

Sanghyuk is a little too giddy when he rushes down the stairs to the grand foyer, smiling when he sees Taeyang on the security monitor, and happily opens the door. 

"You came!" Sanghyuk exclaims.

Taeyang scratches the back of his neck, smiling softly for the very first time. "Yeah, guess I did." 

The two of them couldn't possibly be any more different. Taeyang looks incredibly out of place in the grand foyer of the sprawling, luxurious estate, but there's something about his presence that makes Sanghyuk's heart squeeze a little.

"Sorry, I didn't really know what to wear." Taeyang vaguely gestures to his black t-shirt and leather pants. "Can't say I ever expected to end up someplace like here." He admits almost sheepishly. Sanghyuk thinks it's adorable. “Still have no idea why someone like you would want to associate with someone like me.” 

“Could say the exact same thing, but that doesn’t matter at all. I like you for who you are.” 

Taeyang sighs, but looks fond. “You’re seriously going to get me in trouble one day.” 

Sanghyuk didn’t exactly plan extensively about what exactly they were going to do beforehand, so he just goes with his gut and leads Taeyang out to his family’s backyard. To be honest,  _ backyard  _ is a bit of an understatement. 

“Holy shit, you have a horse stable at your house?” Taeyang immediately comments, eyes widening. “This has to be at least a few acres big.” He turns to Sanghyuk in shock. 

“C’mon, let me show you something!” Sanghyuk takes Taeyang’s hand in his, so naturally as if they’ve done it dozens of times before. As he leads Taeyang over to the stables, he can’t think about anything except for how soft Taeyang’s hand is and the way his heart is rapidly beating inside his chest. They stop in front of a beautiful mustang with a deep chocolate coloured coat. “This is Fantasy, she’s my horse.” Sanghyuk proudly announces, running a hand through her mane. “I got her for my twentieth birthday from my parents, she’s honestly my everything.” Fantasy looks content, leaning into Sanghyuk’s touch.

“Oh my god, she’s gorgeous.” Taeyang remarks. “I’ve never really seen a horse up close before.” He quietly laughs to himself. “The only type of mustang I’ve seen up close is my car.” Fantasy happily whinnies when Taeyang tentatively runs his hand through her mane, face breaking into a much wider smile. 

“She likes you a lot.” 

“Huh, that’s definitely new.”

Sanghyuk flushes when he realizes that their hands are still intertwined. “Taeyang, I like you a lot too.” Taeyang’s hand abruptly stops from where it was petting Fantasy. 

“You shouldn’t. Sanghyuk, you really shouldn’t get involved with someone like me.” His voice now lacks warmth, and is suddenly distant. 

“Can’t we still try though?” Sanghyuk’s on the verge of pleading. He’s never met anyone like Taeyang before, he’s only ever known the people his  _ parents  _ wanted him to associate with. He never exactly got the chance to make friends on his own accord. And despite Taeyang’s rough exterior, his morally ambiguous line of work, Sanghyuk can see past the initial facade to discover something softer and kinder about him. 

Taeyang’s voice is wavering now. “Please don’t make this so difficult for me.” 

Neither one of them have noticed that they’ve moved closer to one another, so close that Sanghyuk can feel Taeyang’s soft breaths fanning over his face. It’s as if they’re both unable to keep their eyes off each other, hypnotically transfixed. 

“Does that mean you like me too?” Sanghyuk responds with bated breath. 

Taeyang doesn’t respond, but his eyes flick downwards to Sanghyuk’s mouth. 

That’s really all it takes.

Sanghyuk knows that he’s naive, he can be reckless and loud at times, impulsive with his decisions, but he’s never been more sure about a decision. He leans forward, closing the small gap between them and presses a kiss against Taeyang’s lips. 

Taeyang stiffens which causes Sanghyuk to immediately recoil, his entire body filling with the sensation of absolute  _ dread.  _

“Oh my god, I’m so sorry, I should’ve asked you first, I shouldn’t have done —”

Taeyang’s arms move to wrap around his waist, pulling Sanghyuk in for a more passionate kiss and effectively shutting him up. The moment is cathartic, their mouths perfectly slotting against one another as if they’ve been always destined to be together, they just never knew. Sanghyuk angles his head to kiss Taeyang even deeper, inhaling the familiar smell of Taeyang’s clean smelling cologne. 

When they part after what feels like an eternity, Sanghyuk laughs at how they just kissed in the middle of a horse stable, which Taeyang quickly picks up on and laughs with him. 

This time it’s not soft and quiet, but as if Taeyang is no longer holding himself back. He laughs with his entire body, eyes crinkling at the corners and having to lean against Sanghyuk’s body for support as he shakes with laughter. 

Sanghyuk doesn’t think he’s ever heard a more beautiful sound in his entire life. 

“I didn’t think this would ever happen. I thought my love life was over the second I joined a gang.” Taeyang confesses truthfully. “I’ve just always been a romantic at heart.”

“Really?” Sanghyuk says, a little shocked. “That’s so cute.” 

“Oh my god, shut up.” Taeyang frowns, simultaneously pouting. “You’re cute too, I guess.” That’s enough to send Sanghyuk spiralling again, head dizzy with affection. “Can I tell you another secret?” 

Sanghyuk nods.

Taeyang looks down shyly. “I’ve always wanted to be led in a relationship. Let someone hold my hand throughout everything. Give someone the reins instead of having to do everything all the time.” 

“I’ll lead you.” Sanghyuk says happily, looping his arms around Taeyang’s neck and pressing a soft kiss to the tiny mole at the tip of his nose. “We’ll make this work, together.” 

Taeyang’s eyes soften, almost glimmering in the sunlight.

“Together.” 

**Author's Note:**

> lol this was so dumb, you can definitely tell i wrote this in a day
> 
> [check me out on twitter!](http://twitter.com/PEGCHANGMIN) and come cry with me over taewon 
> 
> also yes taeyang totally stole rowoon's stage name lmfao


End file.
